A Quantum Biomechanical Basis for Near

Transcription

Journal of Near-Death Studies
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
Style file version September 27, 2002
A Quantum Biomechanical Basis
for Near-Death Life Reviews
Thomas E. Beck, Ph.D.
Janet E. Colli, Ph.D.
Seattle, WA
ABSTRACT: Near-death life reviews pose a challenge to current memory research in terms of the sheer amount of instantaneous and empathetic information recall. Advances in quantum physics, biomechanics, holographic information theory, and consciousness studies support for the first time a fully
realizable quantum biomechanical basis for near-death life reviews. We introduce the unifying paradigm of the quantum hologram as a non-local carrier of
information. We further investigate the interrelated phenomena of non-local
communications, and the electromagnetic zero-point field. Recent confirmation
of the zero-point field lends credibility to vast memory storage capabilities outside the physical body. Microtubules are considered to be key components in
non-local, quantum processes critical to human consciousness. Discovery of the
liquid crystalline nature of the human body provides further support for our
model. Microtubules, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), and the entire brain are described as communicating non-locally with virtually unlimited memory storage
capacity.
KEY WORDS: near-death experience; life review; memory; non-local communication; quantum hologram; microtubules.
It has been said that the foundation of modern psychiatry was formed
by the study of the impact of traumatic experience (van der Kolk and van
der Hart, 1991). One issue of focus for memory researchers is traumatic
memory retrieval. Do overwhelming experiences leave fixed and indelible memories? While overwhelming experiences make up only a portion
of what is recalled during near-death life reviews, it is instructive to
Thomas E. Beck, Ph.D., is a transpersonal psychotherapist, and is on the advisory
board of Intellergy Institute, founded to derive the transformations between information
and physical reality. Janet E. Colli, Ph.D., is a transpersonal psychotherapist and consciousness researcher. Reprint requests should be addressed to Drs. Beck and Colli at the
Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Avenue North, Suite 341, Seattle, WA 98103;
e-mail: [email protected].
C 2003 Human Sciences Press, Inc.
Journal of Near-Death Studies, 21(3), Spring 2003 °
169
170
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
JOURNAL OF NEAR-DEATH STUDIES
consider the perspective of current memory research. For if even traumatic memories are not fixed and indelible, how can other elements
of the near-death life review be said to be accurate, much less all elements of the life review? We begin with a focused review of memory
research, and then explicate three aspects of near-death life reviews
that would be problematic to memory researchers of ordinary and even
overwhelming experiences.
Introduction to Memory Research
Non-traumatic memories have been shown to be subject to alteration.
The “misinformation effect,” that is, how exposure to misinformation
induces memory distortion, has been extensively studied in the laboratory. Elizabeth Loftus and Hunter Hoffman (1989) argued that misinformation can impair the original memory traces themselves. Memories
have been found to be more easily modified when the passage of time
allows for the original memory to fade:
Give us a dozen healthy memories, well-formed, and our own specified world to handle them in. And we’ll guarantee to take any one at
random and train it to become any type of memory that we might
select—hammer, screwdriver, wrench, stop sign, yield sign, Indian
chief—regardless of its origin or the brain that holds it. (Loftus and
Hoffman, 1989, p. 103)
Loftus has most recently dedicated herself to the creation of “false”
memories, experimentally “implanting” memories for nonexistent
events that would supposedly have been traumatic had they occurred,
such as being lost in a shopping mall as a small child (1997).
However, there are significant differences between such memories
and the perceptions characteristic of posttraumatic stress disorder
(PTSD). The opposing side of the debate focuses on the initial form
traumatic memories take, that is, dissociated mental imprints of sensory and affective elements in the visual, auditory, olfactory and kinesthetic channels. Trauma is said to be “speechless terror,” with narrative
memory emerging only over time (van der Kolk and Fisler, 1995). One
prominent researcher of traumatic stress has gone so far as to write:
As of early 1995, I could find no published accounts in the scientific
literature of intrusive traumatic recollections of traumatic events in
patients suffering from PTSD that had become distorted over time,
naturalistically, or by manipulation, either in an experimental or in a
clinical setting. (van der Kolk, McFarlane, and Weisaeth, 1996, p. 282)
ph167-jond-455247
THOMAS E. BECK AND JANET E. COLLI
November 19, 2002
12:1
171
However, inconsistent recall for specific features of combat memory has
recently been demonstrated, thus challenging the notion that there
is an indelible fixation in the mind of traumatic events (Southwick,
Morgan, Nicolaou, and Charney, 1997).
Memory researchers have thus sought a closer look at brain regions
that are activated in the retrieval of memories. The application of brain
imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows
the examination of the neuroanatomical correlates of both veridical and
illusory memories (Gauthier, Hayward, Tarr, Anderson, Skudlarski,
and Gore, 2002). Positron emission tomography (PET) scans measure
changes in blood flow in the brain that indicate neural activity. PET
scans of subjects who merely listened to lists of words showed that “accurate memories appear to retrieve sensory details that are not available to us in illusory memories” (Begley, 1996, p. 64; Schacter, Reiman,
Curran, Yun, Bandy, McDermott, and Roediger, 1996). The “true” memories activated areas in the superior temporal lobe, the region that processes sounds of recently heard words. The implication is that retrieval
of veridical memories activates the brain regions that originally processed the perceptual stimuli during encoding (the auditory cortex in
this case).
However, sensory signatures interpreted as an expression of a distinctive memory trace present during the original event may not be
readily traceable in the slower response measures obtained with MRI
and PET scans. Such transient brain activity has been isolated with
event-related brain potentials (ERPs) recorded with scalp electrodes.
One study demonstrated differences in event-related brain potentials
at the time of retrieval for true versus false memories (Fabiani, Stadler,
and Wessels, 2000). Brain activity associated with memory for traumatic and emotionally charged events is only just beginning to be studied. But as memory is influenced by the biochemistry of the stress
response, markers for memory veracity are being found in measurable
physiological changes in victims of abuse (Cotton, 1994).
Yet the search for physiological markers of memory veracity is at odds
with what many near-death researchers take for granted: that is, the
veracity of entire life reviews. After all, the notion of the brain as a virtual “videorecorder” has been seriously challenged. Wilder Penfield’s
well-known work on electrical stimulation of certain brain sites during surgery on epileptic patients during the 1940s has since been reevaluated. Note Penfield’s 1969 account of the stable nature of the
flashbacks:
172
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
It is clear that the neuronal action that accompanies each succeeding
state of consciousness leaves its permanent imprint on the brain. The
imprint, or record, is a trail of facilitation of neuronal connections that
can be followed again by an electric current many years later with no
loss of detail, as though a tape recorder had been receiving it all. (1969,
p. 165)
However, a closer look at this widely cited research shows that these responses were relatively rare (3.0 to 7.7 percent of cases), and were vague
descriptions, more likely reconstructions or inferences rather than actual memories (Loftus and Loftus, 1980). Indeed, by 1975 Penfield could
be seen as more conservative, and did not regard the electrically stimulated impressions perceived by subjects as real memories, but rather
as artificial.
Near-Death Life Reviews
Given this onslaught against the veracity of memory itself, how can
near-death researchers defend the veracity of near-death life reviews,
an experience said to entail all significant memories during a lifetime?
Even if overwhelming experiences are remembered as dissociated sensory elements and not subject to distortion, as Bessel van der Kolk,
Alexander McFarlane, and Lars Weisaeth (1996) argued, typical neardeath life reviews are remembered as narrative, explicit memories. PET
scans and MRIs of near-death experiencers (NDErs) during later recall
of their life review could help resolve the issue of veridicality. However,
the search for a physical substrate for near-death life reviews is also
critical.
Melvin Morse and Paul Perry (1992) linked life reviews to the Sylvian
fissure of the right temporal lobe, though they have been faulted (Wade,
1996) for relying on Penfield’s work. They hypothesized an excitation
of the body’s electromagnetic field at death, which revives the fading
right temporal lobe to record the NDE. However, few memory theorists
would hold the right temporal lobe, normally associated with long-term
memories, capable of recording the NDE accurately if it entails an entire life review. Also, some NDErs have no measurable brain activity
(Rosenthal and Larson, 1978; Sabom, 1998). “Saying that the Sylvian
fissure is capable of producing certain percepts under special conditions during life is very different from assuming that part of the brain
dominates consciousness after death and that it functions in the same
manner” (Wade, 1996, p. 232). Brain imaging techniques during later
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
173
recall of the near-death life review may provide a means for testing the
Sylvian fissure hypothesis, as the formation of memories is a function
of the brain regions activated, and recall would conceivably activate
those same regions.
Even so, Morse’s extension of the Sylvian fissure argument is at the
forefront of the attempt to account for paranormal experiences and
abilities arising from the NDE. But though Morse went well beyond
Penfield’s conclusion of strict localization of brain function, we believe
he did not fully account for three singular aspects of near-death life
reviews. We will present a non-localized memory theory evolved from
Karl Pribram’s view that the memory engram may be an interference
pattern similar to that made by a laser in a hologram.
Prior to Morse, researchers focused on an underlying neurological
mechanism for near-death life reviews, though Russell Noyes and Roy
Kletti (1977) also cited Penfield’s work as evoking vivid memory recall, which has not been borne out. Gordon Greene, in his search for a
viable causal factor, added the additional concept of hyperspace, “any
space with more than three dimensions” (Greene, 1981, p. 121). As time
spatializes into a fourth dimension, we are said to be able to perceive
hyperspatially and spontaneously, the whole of our lives. Though the
concept of hyperspace correlates with modern-day physicists’ concept
of nth-dimensional space, Greene himself countenanced “the difficulty
of obtaining more than just circumstantial evidence that higher spaces
actually exist” (1981, p. 129).
More recently, Linz Audain (1999) attempted to link neurobiological
concepts to the possibility of the existence of a hyperspace. Yet his attempt to spark “a long debate within the scientific community as to
the nature of the interaction that exists between the neurological and
the metaphysical” (Audain, 1999, p. 104) is likely to fail. Few physical
scientists consider metaphysical subjects worthy of serious dialogue.
As recently as 1994, an article in a respected physics journal (Stapp,
1994) cited an article in the Journal of Parapsychology in presenting a
theoretical model that would allow for causal anomalies incompatible
with well-established principles of physics. However, citing data from
a parapsychology journal provoked opposition from the physics journal’s editor, who expressed his strong opinion that henceforth such papers should not be allowed (H. Stapp, personal communication, February 8, 2002). Carl Becker (1995) has duly faulted Kenneth Arnette
(1999) for applying scientific concepts to the nonmaterial substance
he called “essence.” Furthermore, the necessity of a dualistic approach
has long been questioned (Krishnan, 1996). We intend to apply scientific
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
174
12:1
concepts in a non-dualistic manner to explain the existence of consciousness phenomena on a macroscopic level.
Given the malleable nature of non-traumatic memories, perhaps
NDE researchers can profit from the lesson learned by memory researchers: that is, to differentiate between normal memory and memory
in extreme altered states. For possibly near-death life reviews are not
memories in the usual sense of the word, as suggested by Raymond
Moody: “This review can only be described in terms of memory, since
that is the closest familiar phenomenon to it, but it has characteristics
which set it apart from any normal type of remembering” (1975, p. 64).
Three singular aspects of near-death life reviews cast doubt on their
credibility when considered solely in light of current memory research
and classical physics: (a) the sheer amount of sensory information and
information recall; (b) the apparently instantaneous, panoramic presentation of memories; (c) the review of the experience as perceived by
others. Advances in science support for the first time a theoretical basis for the underlying physical mechanism that would account for these
three singular aspects of near-death life reviews. Examples of each will
serve to illustrate the vast amount of data apparently in memory storage, and how the transparency of ego boundaries seems to allow access
to collective memory.
Amount of Information Recalled
NDErs describe exactly what memory theorists such as Loftus have
attempted to discredit: that is, that human memory can function like
a videorecorder. NDErs frequently use terms like a “movie camera” or
“tape recorder” to express that every single thing they experienced in
their lives was recorded, though it may not have registered in consciousness at the time:
It was like watching my life from start to finish on an editing machine
stuck in fast forward. The review took me from my conception, which
felt like the blackness I experienced after my out-of-body experience,
through my childhood, to adolescence, into my teens, and through my
near-death experience over again. I saw my life. I relived my life. I felt
everything I ever felt before. When I say “everything,” I mean every
cut, pain, emotion and sense associated with that particular time in
my life. (Ring and Valarino, 1998, p. 22)
I not only relived [this incident] in my life review, but I relived every
exact thought and attitude—even the air temperature and things that
I couldn’t have possibly measured when I was eight years old. For
example, I wasn’t aware of how many mosquitoes were in the area. In
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
175
the life review, I could have counted the mosquitoes. Everything was
more accurate than could possibly be perceived in the reality of the
original event. (Ring and Valarino, 1998, p. 170)
Instantaneous, Panoramic Presentation of Memories
Whether or not a temporal order of events is remembered, the threedimensional, panoramic review occurs in what seems like an instant of
time:
With regard to the question of time, everything happened instantaneously . . . . It is like an explosion, it is all there. When my life went
before my eyes, it was not from my earliest memory at thirteen months.
There was an enormous TV screen in front of me. . . . Way over on the
left was my memory at thirteen months, and way over on the right was
July, 1972, age thirty-eight. Everything in between was right there and
I could see the whole thing, all at the same instant. (Ring and Valarino,
1998, p. 150)
Review of the Experience as Perceived by Others
The review is experienced from the perspective of all lives that intersected with one’s own, from purely personal interactions to the transpersonal or collective level of consciousness:
I rethought every thought, I reexperienced every feeling, as it happened, in an instant. And I also felt how my actions, or even just
my thoughts, had affected others. When I had passed judgment on
someone else, I would experience myself doing that. . . . Multitudinous
actions or thoughts, derived from my own meanness, unkindness, or
anger, caused me to feel the consequent pains of the other people. I
experienced this even if at the time I had hurt someone, I had chosen to ignore how that would affect them. And I felt their pain for the
full length of time they were affected by what I had done. (Ring and
Valarino, 1998, pp. 158–159)
I learned that time as we think of it doesn’t exist, nor does the separation between us. . . . in fact, it was almost as if there was no “other.”
I say almost because I had self-awareness, but knew my awareness
lived within an intricate pattern that existed eternally, everywhere.
(Ring and Valarino, 1998, p. 176)
I experienced all of my experiences not only from my perspective but
also from everyone else’s, even those I didn’t even know or interact
with. . . . I then crossed the threshold of the birth of this body and this
process of Review accelerated and I relived all former lives of my particular “soul,” if you will. . . . Then I lived all lives being lived on this
ph167-jond-455247
176
November 19, 2002
12:1
planet. And finally, all lives being lived throughout the Universe, all
the way to the Ultimate Awareness of All Creation. It was a truly incredible, indescribable experience. (Colli, 2001)
If veridical, these three aspects of near-death life reviews highlight
the limited perspective of current memory research. The challenge such
reviews pose cannot be overemphasized. However, perhaps these reviews are problematic only when considered in light of classical physics,
and the laws underlying the ordinary world of macroscopic objects. The
following sections examine how “extraordinary” experiences of ordinary
humans take us beyond the scope of classical physics.
Quantum Biomechanics
In light of recent scientific developments, the experience of neardeath life reviews can be seen to acquire new legitimacy. With the
emergence of quantum biomechanics, a new understanding of the mechanism of life reviews may be articulated. Two mutually related concepts
are crucial to the application of quantum biomechanics to the functioning of the human body: quantum coherence and non-local communication. We begin by describing lasers in order to explain the relevance
these concepts have for consciousness, for quantum coherence and nonlocal communication occur within structures in the physical human
body.
Quantum Coherence
This natural physical phenomenon involves large numbers of light
(or matter) particles that cooperate collectively in a single state. The
intense, narrow beam of a laser exemplifies quantum coherence. All of
the emitted light particles, or photons, oscillate together at the same
frequency and phase, resulting in a light beam of a single color. Driven
by external stimulation, the laser reaches a critical energetic threshold,
above which it undergoes a non-linear phase transition, an abrupt jump
to a higher energy level. In laser light, all the photons lack individual
identities and thus are said to be in the same quantum state (Marshall,
1989). By contrast, incandescent and fluorescent lamps emit incoherent
light in all directions, in a broad spectrum of frequencies, resulting in
white light.
Lasers undergo a phase transition in which many photons become coherent and are thus described by the same mathematical wave function.
In quantum mechanical terms, such systems of coherent excitations are
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
177
called Bose–Einstein condensates. Bose–Einstein condensates demonstrate collective, macroscopic quantum states—macroscopic since the
effects of some Bose–Einstein condensates can be directly observed,
without the aid of magnification.
Non-local Communication
Quantum coherence between particles involves non-local communication, that is, interaction which is: (1) instantaneous, (2) independent
of distance, and (3) impervious to shielding. Non-locality refers to processes in which signals propagate across any distance instantaneously.
By contrast, signals that propagate in a finite period of time are called
local signals; for example, the visible electromagnetic light to which our
eyes respond (Goswami, 1993). Electromagnetic waves in the form of
incoherent, white light, as in sunshine, or radio and television transmissions, exhibit none of these three characteristics. They traverse the
distance between the transmitter and the receiver in a finite, measurable period of time; they diminish in intensity the farther they travel;
and they can be blocked by appropriate shielding.
Non-locality is not to be confused with faster-than-light, or superluminal signal propagation. Superluminal signals (those propagating
faster than 186,000 miles per second) would, despite their great velocity, still take many human lifetimes to cross our galaxy (Nimtz, 1998).
Physicists have experimentally demonstrated non-local interaction between photons (Aspect, Dalibard, and Roger, 1982). These experiments
demonstrate that non-local communication is possible across any arbitrarily large distance.
On the scale of human perception, evidence suggests that humans
perceive by means of both local and non-local processes. For example,
when viewing a nearby person, the eyes respond to electromagnetic
waves, but the mind also seemingly responds to a non-local, instantaneous component (Mitchell, 1999). During remote viewing of the same
person who is miles distant, only the non-local aspect is perceived by the
viewer, which provides a dreamlike, unclear image. This is consistent
with altered states of consciousness such as clairvoyance, precognition,
and telepathy. The Central Intelligence Agency has engaged in “a multiyear, multi-site, multi-million-dollar effort to determine whether such
phenomena as remote viewing ‘might have any utility for intelligence
collection’ ” (Puthoff, 1996, p. 64). Dean Radin (1997) summarized nonlocal experiments across a range of phenomena. His statistical analyses demonstrated the viability of non-local perception. Self-reports of
178
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
near-death life reviews also suggest non-local perception, as they are
said to be virtually instantaneous. All of the above experiences provide crucial support for the theory that the human body possesses the
quantum biomechanical mechanisms necessary for non-local communication. However, until the current stage of scientific research, the scientific explanation for such phenomena has been lacking. Researchers
are now beginning to connect these anecdotal reports to the underlying
mechanisms on the molecular level.
On the molecular scale, non-local communication has been identified within the physical human body. We refer again to the laser—a
Bose–Einstein condensate—whose core element can be a crystal. The
resulting coherent beam of light carries enormous amounts of information, as in cable television. It has recently been discovered that living
organisms, including much of the human body, are liquid crystalline in
structure (Ho, 1999; 1998b). Liquid crystals are states of matter that
encompass a wide range of fluidity, from solid crystal to semi-solid proteins to gel-like cellular fluids. Whereas the calcium phosphate crystals
in bones are solid, the collagen in bone is semi-solid and is referred to
as a liquid crystal. Biological organisms are largely composed of liquid
crystalline materials such as connective tissue and cell membranes,
plus other tissues that fill up the spaces between the organs. “The connective tissues of our body include the skin, bones, tendons, ligaments,
cartilage, various membranes covering major organs and linings of internal spaces” (Ho, 1999). Liquid crystals, used extensively in calculator
displays, possess properties that make them ideal for rapid intercellular communication. Within the coherent, liquid crystalline human body,
intercommunication is instantaneous and non-local (Ho, 1998a).
As evidence of this, biomolecular quantum tunneling has been demonstrated in proteins and in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) in the human
body (Stuchebrukhov, 1996; Wagenknecht, Rajski, Pascaly, Stemp, and
Barton, 2001). Quantum tunneling refers to the instantaneous behavior
of atomic-scale particles such as photons, electrons, protons, or hydrogen atoms that “jump” from point A to point B without traversing the
distance in between. Physicist Guenter Nimtz (1999) has demonstrated
quantum photon tunneling through a barrier, over a distance of about
5.5 inches. Actual signal traversal time within the barrier is instantaneous, regardless of barrier length (G. Nimtz, personal communication,
April 6, 2002).
Another example of liquid crystalline substance is the intracellular
cytoplasm, the fluid inside bodily cells. Microtubules are the principal organizing constituents of cytoplasm. Given that microtubules are
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
179
found within most cells, we now address the role that microtubules play
in non-local communication within the human body.
Cellular Microtubules
Bose–Einstein condensation can occur with both light particles, or
photons, and matter particles, such as protons, neutrons, and electrons. While Bose–Einstein condensates comprised of matter have been
demonstrated only at extremely low laboratory temperatures (−459◦ F),
lasers can operate at normal room temperatures (72◦ F). Quantum coherence also occurs in living organisms, including the human body,
which maintains an internal temperature of about 98.6◦ F. Quantum
coherence has been observed in specific biological structures called microtubule networks within nucleated cells (Hameroff, 1994). Evidence
indicates that microtubules emit single photons of light and can be
viewed as microscopic pulse-lasers within living cells (Popp, Li, Nagl,
and Klima, 1983).
Microtubules are biological Bose–Einstein condensates that are considered to play an important role in human communications, memory
recall, and learning. They may prove to be the fundamental elements
of a non-local communication network that provide the basis for neardeath life reviews. A brief description of their properties will shed further light on these remarkable miniature communications networks.
As the name implies, microtubules are microscopic. They are selforganizing, tubular protein structures present in nearly all eukaryotic cells—that is, cells that have a nucleus. Eukaryotic cells include
most cells in the human body and throughout nature. Microtubules
form a complex skeleton-like structure that physically supports the entire cell, giving it shape and resilience. However, beyond their physical
attributes, microtubules provide a complex communications network
within each cell that is essential for the cell’s overall functioning. Indeed, the microtubule network is sometimes referred to as the cell’s
“brain.”
Part of the cell’s microtubule structure is the microtubule organizing center, which runs the cell’s “machinery” and organizes most, if not
all, cell functions, including critical cell division. In some neural cells,
the microtubules can be nearly one meter long and arranged in bundles of hundreds or thousands. They might be compared to fiber-optic
cables used for telephone communications, which consist of numerous
thin wires bundled together. For a sense of proportion, a microtubule
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
180
12:1
one meter long would compare to a one-inch diameter garden hose over
600 miles long, though most microtubules are much shorter. On a molecular level, their complexity is incomprehensible. However, on a quantum level, the communication occurring within microtubules is a relatively simple process.
Quantum Effects of Microtubules
Communication at the level of microtubules has been described mathematically (Marcer and Schempp, 1997). A growing body of scientific
knowledge supports the theory that microtubules possess three important properties related to intercellular and intracellular communications: (a) propagation of laser-like, coherent micropulses of light; (b)
quantum, non-local information processing; and (c) emergent, collective, macroscopic properties arising from a critical level of coherence of
quantum events.
Light Propagation. Microtubules propagate laser-like, coherent,
single-photon micropulses of light that result from Bose–Einstein condensation. Evidence suggests that these individual micropulses of light
effectively generate single-photon holograms, just as a laser beam, composed of countless individual photons, generates a hologram (Hirano
and Hirai, 1986). If trillions of microtubules in the human body each
create single-photon holograms, the amount of holographically encoded
information may be effectively unlimited. However, unlike other Bose–
Einstein condensates, these occur at body temperature. Their energy
source is the 98.6◦ ambient heat bath of human cellular fluids, or cytoplasm, in which microtubules are immersed. Cells filled with cytoplasm
are not simply minuscule bags of water with organelles sloshing around
randomly. Rather, cytoplasm is a highly structured viscous fluid that
has evolved to allow rapid communication through its unique electromagnetic and quantum properties—through microtubules. The human
body is thus possessed of collective quantum effects throughout its entirety, including, most importantly, the central nervous system and the
brain. The implication is that vast quantities of information about the
state of the organism and its environment can be absorbed and reemitted by single photons.
Non-local Communication. A second inherent property of microtubules is the quantum phenomenon of non-local communication, or so
called “action-at-a-distance.” Peter Marcer and Walter Schempp (1997)
described microtubule signal propagation within the human body as
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
181
occurring instantaneously. Non-local communication is implicated in
many subjectively reported altered-state experiences such as neardeath life reviews. Such reports are not in accord with classical concepts of linear time and space. The microtubule network may provide
the communication mechanism for instantaneous downloading of an
entire lifetime of experiences that are “replayed” in a matter of moments,
as if the process occurs at a highly accelerated rate. Note that we are not
referring to the familiar neurochemical signal propagation within the
central nervous system, which travels at approximately 240 miles per
hour. Indeed, we are referring to a related, yet clearly distinct, communications network.
Emergent Properties. Finally, consider that emergent, collective,
macroscopic properties may arise from a critical level of coherence of
quantum events. The laser, a room-temperature Bose–Einstein condensate, is an example. The photons arising from the absorption and reemission of stimulating energy give rise to the collective coherent effect
of an intense beam of light of a single wavelength. In this model, microtubules function as pulse-laser signal generators possessing weak
electromagnetic fields that cross over between microtubules (Koruga,
Hameroff, Withers, Loutfy, and Sundareshan, 1993). Cross-over between any two microtubules situated parallel to one another would
result in interference patterns, similar to bands of dark and light. Encoded within the interference patterns would be enormous quantities
of holographic information.
It is well known that anesthetics impair the functioning of microtubules, an effect that leads to loss of consciousness (Hameroff, 1994).
Such evidence indicates that microtubules may represent the physical
structures responsible for the emergence of consciousness. The net effect of countless bundles of neuronal microtubule “cables” would thus
be the basis for a profound emergent collective, macroscopic effect: consciousness. Emergence refers to the occurrence of conscious awareness
at a critical threshold—resulting from the cumulative effect of countless microtubules acting in a coordinated manner. Consciousness is
thus said to result from collective quantum effects that occur in microtubule networks within the central nervous system (Koruga, 1995).
Moreover, experimental research links microtubules to bioinformation
processes such as memory and learning (Koruga, Hameroff, Withers,
Loutfy, and Sundareshan, 1993). For example, in Alzheimer’s disease,
the cytoskeleton—the microtubule network—becomes entangled. The
clinical symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, that is, cognitive defects in
182
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
learning and memory, have been produced in Gilbert Bensimon and
Raymond Chermat’s study by the drug colchicine, which causes selective destruction of brain microtubules (Bensimon and Chermat, 1991).
Near-death life reviews within the context of this model represent
a specific, emergent, quantum effect that is both collective and macroscopic. Such a model provides a basis for understanding the following
examples of non-local communication. Dreams contain a great deal of
information and meaning that may require hours to order and integrate. Intuitive ideas are often “downloaded” in a fraction of the time
they take to decipher and put into sequential order. A research subject
of one of the authors (TEB) spoke of “thunderbolts” of information she
“received” that took weeks to fully comprehend. A psychotherapy client
of the other author (JEC) dreamt prophetically of her current husband
ten years prior to their meeting. Although ordinary states of consciousness usually impede such awarenesses, once accessed through nonordinary states, we order the data as it emerges into four-dimensional
space-time. “Perhaps our brains (in particular, coherently oscillating
cytoskeletal microtubules) discriminate, detect, and serialize synchronistic and non-local . . . quantum states which spontaneously and simultaneously emerge (from what Jung referred to as the ‘collective unconscious’)” (Koruga, Hameroff, Withers, Loutfy, and Sundareshan, 1993,
p. 206).
Holographic Memory
Ervin Laszlo (1995) theorized that memory may be largely stored in a
collective, holographic memory field that lies outside the boundaries of
the physical body. Memories would then be accessed by the brain from
that ambient field rather than being stored primarily within the brain,
as classical neurobiology maintains. This accords with the perceptions
of clairvoyants who claim to access information contained in the bioenergetic field surrounding each individual, such as personal imagery,
and memories of significant events. The empathetic nature of the neardeath life review, where one’s thoughts and actions are reviewed from
the perspective of others, may also exemplify information retrieval from
an ambient field. This ambient field may also relate to Jung’s concept
of the collective unconscious, a vast pool of archetypal images.
The principle function of the physical brain may be to serve as a mediator for coherent coupling of numerous subsystems (Ho, 1998a). In
the language of computer science, it would be comparable to a complex
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
183
operating system and central processing unit, albeit vastly more
sophisticated than any computer currently available. Holographic
memory, while stored globally, can be accessed locally, just as an image distributed throughout a holographic plate can be reproduced in its
entirety by shining a laser through any part of the plate. The organism can be considered as having its own quantum holographic field (for
transmission and reception) with which it communicates to the larger
universal or collective field. Such a model would allow for the recovery of
stored information from the larger field instantaneously and in unlimited quantities. Coherent systems display neither spatial nor temporal
separation. Communication from one part to another occurs instantaneously, regardless of the distance (Ho, 1998b). Such memory recovery
correlates with the description of many self-reports of near-death life
reviews and may provide a realizable mechanism for them. To understand the nature of such field-to- field communication networks, a basic
understanding of holography will be useful.
A hologram is an image of a three-dimensional object, created by first
splitting a single, coherent laser beam into two beams. The split-off object beam carries the data content, while the reference beam holds the
data location. When the two beams later intersect, a complex interference pattern of dark and light bands results. This pattern encodes
the surface characteristics and location of the object being illuminated
by the object beam. In order to retrieve the entire stored image, the
reference beam is shined through any part of the holographic plate.
The holographic technique packs data very tightly, storing extensive
amounts of information in a small volume. Our next level of technology
hopes to achieve holographic memory storage on a single 12-centimeter
disk, estimated to hold one terabyte of data, the equivalent of 200 digital
video disks (DVDs) (MacNeill, 2001).
Pribram first proposed that the brain stores information encoded as
a hologram. Highly organized microscopic structures within the human body have been proposed as holographic storage media, namely,
DNA, facilitated by liquid crystalline proteins and intracellular fluids
(Marcer and Schempp, 1996). Holographic memory theory applied to
living organisms would allow for the storage of vast amounts of information both inside the physical body and, as Laszlo suggested, outside
the body in the ambient zero-point field. The zero-point field, described
below, pervades the entire physical universe, including intergalactic
space as well as the space within all physical matter. The localized
field, in and around the body, would thus be coupled with the much
larger global field. The empathetic aspect of the near-death life review
184
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
may be one of the most significant examples of holographic memory retrieval. Through this process, the physical brain would effectively have
access to a “collective unconscious” with instantaneous communication
(Ho, 1998a; Marcer and Schempp, 1997).
The Quantum Hologram
Quantum physics involves fundamental interactions between physical matter and light. At this level of material reality, particles behave
in peculiar ways that are not intuitively obvious, such as spontaneously
tunneling through barriers to emerge instantaneously on the other side.
The mathematical formalism of quantum physics is the language used
to describe the quantum hologram (Marcer and Schempp, 1999). Edgar
Mitchell (1999), who has further applied quantum theory to consciousness, stated that the “discovery of the non-local quantum hologram . . .
provides the first quantum physical mechanism compatible with the
macro-scale three-dimensional world as we experience it.”
In simple terms, quantum holography can be described as a novel
information-processing paradigm that explains human intra- and intercommunication. Such interactions involve processes on all cosmological scales, from subatomic particles to the interstellar (Marcer and
Schempp, 1999). Quantum holography requires us to reconsider our
classical view of space-time. One functional example of a quantum
holographic information retrieval system is the magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) machine that hospitals routinely use to obtain internal images of the human body. Quantum holography models the workings of neurons in the brain and central nervous system, whose microtubules emit single-photon pulses of light. According to this theory,
single-photon pulses of light holographically encode information. Nature may thus have evolved its own quantum holographic system, which
utilizes fundamental particles of light that may literally communicate
with the whole universe. The other structure relevant to quantum holographic communication and memory networks is DNA.
DNA’s capacity for virtually unlimited holographic compression of
data has been described by Marcer and Schempp (1996). DNA is considered to be a universal medium, or template, for the recording of
holographic information. Previously, it was believed that DNA’s principle function was to provide a template for an organism’s physical
structure. However, DNA’s main function is currently theorized to be
not structural, but rather one of communication. “DNA therefore defines
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
185
the unique spectral signature or set of frequencies onto which potentially
the entire experience or history of an organism can be written (and read)”
(Marcer and Schempp, 1996, p. 54). The nearly three billion DNA base
pairs contained in every human cell can be thought of as an extensive
stack of compact disks, each of which possesses enormous data storage
capacity. According to this model, DNA’s total base pairs comprise a
read-write system of virtually unlimited capacity. Yet an organicallybased, quantum holographic memory system requires one additional
concept: the zero-point field.
The existence of the electromagnetic zero-point field has been experimentally demonstrated by Steve Lamoreaux (1997). The zero-point
field is also referred to as the quantum vacuum, implying that a plenum,
or abundance of matter and energy, exists in interstellar space, which
was previously believed to be an empty void. All of space, including the
voids between atoms within “solid” matter, contains enormous energy
potential. Matter and energy are continuously created and annihilated,
emerging spontaneously out of, and disappearing back into, the zeropoint field. It is now widely accepted by physicists that the quantum
vacuum is the underlying source of all matter and energy in the universe. Theoretically the energy potential of the vacuum is enormous,
perhaps exceeding that of nuclear energy potential (Sokolov, 1996).
Marcer and Schempp (1997) described a quantum model of self-organization from the dynamic quantum vacuum by means of an emitter/absorber model of holography. As each particle emits and absorbs
packets of energy or information, propagated through the medium of
the zero-point field, the entire history of the particle is stored and accessible. The zero-point field has been proposed as the memory storage medium for all particle interactions, including interactions on a
macroscopic scale, such as human memory of life events. Based on the
holographic principle, long-term memory retrieval from the ambient
zero-point field occurs when interference patterns are reconverted into
the image of those objects or events originally recorded (Laszlo, 1995).
In this model, the brain and central nervous system are viewed not
as memory locations themselves, but rather as organic processes that
interact directly with the zero-point field on a quantum level. David
Lorimer has intuitively observed that near-death life reviews require
“an interconnected web of creation, a holographic mesh in which the
parts are related to the Whole and through the Whole to each other
by empathetic resonance” (Lorimer, 1990, p. 22). For the first time, a
scientifically rigorous biomechanical model is available through which
this process can be described.
186
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
Perhaps the most significant finding to come out of this body of research is the application of quantum mechanical theory to the macroscopic world perceivable by the physical senses, as summarized by
Mitchell (1999): “Further, recognition that the quantum hologram is
a macro-scale, non-local, information structure described by the standard formalism of quantum mechanics extends quantum mechanics
to all physical objects including DNA molecules, organic cells, organs,
brains, and bodies.”
Conclusion
According to current memory research, it is implausible that one’s
life, replete with minute details, can be remembered in its entirety, let
alone reviewed in a matter of seconds. Such life reviews become even
less credible if they include perceptions of those same events as experienced through the senses of others. Yet vividly empathic life reviews
are commonly reported during near-death experiences. Moreover, such
experiences are often subjectively described as occurring “outside of
time and space,” which is consistent with the concept of instantaneous
communication. Previously there has been no non-dualistic, scientific
mechanism for explaining how such communication can occur in the
physical human body. Quantum holographic theory may afford an explanation for the physiological mechanism of near-death life reviews.
Quantum holography provides a theoretical model within which the
human body may function as a non-local communication network.
Microtubules and DNA within the liquid crystalline body are the
quantum-scale structures and physical mechanisms required for this
level of communication, in terms of (a) the sheer amount of sensory
information and information recall, as well as (b) virtually instantaneous information recall. The zero-point field may further provide the
medium within which unlimited amounts of information may be written and retrieved by quantum mechanical processes. The vast amount
of sensory information and recall necessary for near-death life reviews
would thus be realizable.
While the microtubule and DNA communication network would provide the means for an individual’s memories, mediation by means of
the zero-point field would serve to explain (c) the review of events from
the perspective of those with whom the individual had interacted. The
zero-point field is not only the source of all energy and matter, but the
continuum through which non-local communications may occur across
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
187
any distance. The zero-point field, being comprised of continuous quantum energy fluctuations, which are inherently non-local, would allow
for instantaneous communication. This would allow sufficient “time” to
elapse during the NDE for the entire life review to complete itself, despite the relatively short duration—in linear time—of NDEs. Moreover,
a coherent zero-point field would be equally accessible to every human.
Non-local communications mediated by means of the zero-point field
would allow near-death experiencers to perceive their actions from the
perspective of those with whom they interact, and so forth, until potentially “all lives being lived on this planet” are reviewed.
References
Arnette, J. (1999). The theory of essence. III. Neuroanatomical and neurophysiological
aspects of interactionism. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 14, 73–101.
Aspect, A., Dalibard, J., and Roger, G. (1982). Experimental test of Bell inequalities using
time-varying analyzers. Physical Review Letters, 49, 1804.
Audain, L. (1999). Near-death experiences and the theory of the extraneuronal hyperspace. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 18, 103–115.
Becker, C. B. (1995). A philosopher’s view of near-death research. Journal of Near-Death
Studies, 14, 17–28.
Begley, S. (1996, July 15). You must remember this. Newsweek, p. 64.
Bensimon, G., and Chermat, R. (1991). Microtubule disruption and cognitive defects:
Effect of colchicine on learning behavior in rats. Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior, 38, 141–145.
Colli, J. E. (2001). Angels and aliens: Encounters with both near-death and UFOs. Presented at the International Association of Near-Death Studies 2001 International Conference, Seattle, WA.
Cotton, P. (1994). Medical news and perspectives: Biology enters repressed memory fray.
Journal of American Medical Association, 272, 1725–1726.
Fabiani, M., Stadler, M. A., and Wessels, P. M. (2000). True but not false memories produce a sensory signature in human lateralized brain potentials. Journal of Cognitive
Neuroscience, 12, 941–949.
Fröhlich, H. (1988). Theoretical physics and biology. In H. Fröhlich (ed.), Biological
coherence and response to external stimuli (pp. 1–24). Berlin, Germany: SpringerVerlag.
Gauthier, I., Hayward, W. G., Tarr, M. J., Anderson, A. W., Skudlarski, P., and Gore,
J. C. (2002). BOLD activity during mental rotation and viewpoint-dependent object
recognition. Neuron, 34, 161–171.
Goswami, A. (1993). The self-aware universe: How consciousness creates the material
world. New York, NY: Tarcher/ Putnam.
Greene, F. G. (1981). A glimpse behind the life review. Journal of Religion and Psychical
Research, 4, 113–130.
Hameroff, S. (2001). Feasibility of macroscopic quantum mechanisms in the brain.
Retrieved April 18, 2002, from the University of Arizona course “Consciousness
at the Millennium: Quantum Approaches to Understanding the Mind” Web site:
http://www.consciousness.arizona.edu/quantum/week7a.htm
Hameroff, S. (1994). Quantum coherence in microtubules: A neural basis for emergent
consciousness? Journal of Consciousness Studies, 1, 91–118.
188
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
Hirano, I., and Hirai, N. (1986). Holography in the single-photon region. Applied Optics,
25, 1741–1742.
Ho, M-W. (1999, October 2). Coherent Energy, Liquid Crystallinity and Acupuncture [Talk presented to the British Acupuncture Society]. Retrieved April 18,
2002, from the Institute of Science in Society Web site: http://ratical.org/coglobalize/MaeWanHo/acupunc.html
Ho, M-W. (1998a). Organism and psyche in a participatory universe. In D. Loye (ed.), The
evolutionary outrider. The impact of the human agent on evolution: Essays in honour of
Ervin Laszlo (pp. 49–65). Westport, CT: Praeger.
Ho, M-W. (1998b). The rainbow and the worm: The physics of organisms. Singapore: World
Scientific Publishing.
Koruga, D. (1995). Information physics: In search of a scientific basis of consciousness. In
D. Koruga and D. Rakovic (eds.), Consciousness: Scientific challenge of the 21st century
(pp. 243–261). Belgrade, Serbia: European Centre for Peace and Development (ECPD)
of the United Nations University for Peace.
Koruga, D., Hameroff, S., Withers, J., Loutfy, R., and Sundareshan, M. (1993). Fullerene
C60 : History, physics, nanobiology, nanotechnology. New York, NY: North-Holland.
Krishnan, V. (1996). Misidentified flying objects. [Letter]. Journal of Near-Death Studies,
14, 287–290.
Lamoreaux, S. (1997, January 6). Demonstration of the Casimir force in the 0.6 to 6
micron range. Physical Review Letters, 78(1), 5–8.
Laszlo, E. (1995). The interconnected universe: Conceptual foundations of transdisciplinary unified theory. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing.
Loftus, E. F. (1997, September). Creating false memories. Scientific American, 277(3),
70–75.
Loftus, E. F., and Hoffman, H. G. (1989). Misinformation and memory: The creation of
new memories. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 118, 100–104.
Loftus, E. F., and Loftus, G. R. (1980). On the permanence of stored information in the
human brain. American Psychologist, 35, 409–420.
Lorimer, D. (1990). Whole in one: The near-death experience and the ethic of interconnectedness. London, England: Arkana.
MacNeill, J. (2001, May). Holographic memory: Laser beams store data in three dimensions. Technology Review, pp. 96–97.
Marcer, P. J., and Schempp, W. (1996). A mathematically specified template for DNA and
the genetic code in terms of the physically realizable processes of quantum holography.
In A. M. Fedorec and P. J. Marcer (eds.), Proceedings of the Greenwich Symposium on
Living Computers (pp. 45–62). Wiltshire, England: British Computer Society.
Marcer, P. J., and Schempp, W. (1997). Model of the neuron working by quantum holography, Informatica, 21, 519–534.
Marcer, P. J., and Schempp, W. (1999). Quantum holography: The paradigm of quantum
entanglement. In D. M. Dubois (ed.), Computing anticipatory systems: CASYS ’98, Second International Conference (pp. 461–467). College Park, MD: American Institute of
Physics.
Marshall, I. (1989). Consciousness and Bose–Einstein condensates. New Ideas in Psychology, 7(1), 73–83.
Mitchell, E. (1999). Nature’s mind: The quantum hologram. Retrieved April
18, 2002 from the National Institute for Discovery Science Web site:
http://www.nidsci.org/articles/naturesmind-qh.html
Moody, R. (1975). Life after life. Covington, GA: Mockingbird Books.
Morse, M., and Perry, P. (1992). Transformed by the light: The powerful effect of near-death
experiences on people’s lives. New York, NY: Villard.
Nimtz, G. (1998). Superluminal signal velocity. Annals of Physics (Leipzig), 7, 618–624.
Nimtz, G. (1999). Evanescent modes are not necessarily Einstein causal. European Physical Journal B, 7, 523–525.
ph167-jond-455247
November 19, 2002
12:1
189
Noyes, R., and Kletti, R. (1977). Panoramic memory: A response to the threat of death,
Omega, 8, 181–194.
Penfield, W. (1969). Consciousness, memory, and man’s conditioned reflexes. In K. H.
Pribram (ed.), On the biology of learning (pp. 127–168). New York, NY: Harcourt, Brace
and World.
Penfield, W. (1975). The mystery of the mind: A critical study of consciousness and the
human brain. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Popp, F., Li, K., Nagl, W., and Klima, H. (1983). Indications of optical coherence in biological systems and its possible significance. In H. Fröhlich and Kremer (Eds.), Coherent
excitations in biological systems (pp. 117–122). New York: Springer-Verlag.
Pribram, K. (1969, January). The neurophysiology of remembering. Scientific American,
220(1), 73–86.
Puthoff, H. E. (1996). CIA initiated remote viewing program at Stanford Research Institute. Journal of Scientific Exploration 10, 63–76.
Radin, D. (1997). The conscious universe: The scientific truth of psychic phenomena. San
Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco.
Ring, K., and Valarino, E. E. (1998). Lessons from the light: What we can learn from the
near-death experience. New York, NY: Plenum / Insight.
Rosenthal, M. H., and Larson, C. P. (1978). Protection of the brain from progressive
ischemia. Western Journal of Medicine, 128, 145.
Sabom, M. (1998). Life and death: One doctor’s fascinating account of near-death experiences. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Schacter, D. L., Reiman, E., Curran, T., Yun, L. S., Bandy, D., McDermott, K. B., and
Roediger, H. L. (1996). Neuroanatomical correlates of veridical and illusory recognition
memory: Evidence from positron emission tomography. Neuron, 17, 267–274.
Sokolov, I. (1996). The Casimir effect as a possible source of cosmic energy. Physics Letters
A, 223, 163–166.
Southwick, S. M., Morgan, C. A., Nicolaou, A. L., and Charney, D. S. (1997). Consistency
of memory for combat-related traumatic events in veterans of Operation Desert Storm.
American Journal of Psychiatry, 154, 173–177.
Stapp, H. P. (1994). Theoretical model of a purported empirical violation of the predictions
of quantum theory. Physical Review A, 50(1), 18–22.
Stuchebrukhov, A. A. (1996). Tunneling currents in electron transfer reaction in proteins.
II. Calculation of electronic superexchange matrix element and tunneling currents
using nonorthogonal basis sets. Journal of Chemical Physics, 105, 10819–10829.
van der Kolk, B. A., and Fisler, R. (1995). Dissociation and the fragmentary nature of
traumatic memories: Review and experimental confirmation. Journal of Traumatic
Stress, 8, 505–525.
van der Kolk, B. A., McFarlane, A. C., and Weisaeth, L. (Eds.). (1996). Traumatic stress:
The effects of overwhelming experience on mind, body and society. New York, NY:
Guilford Press.
van der Kolk, B. A., and van der Hart, O. (1991). The intrusive past: The flexibility of
memory and the engraving of trauma. American Imago, 48, 425–454.
Wade, J. (1996). Changes of mind: A holonomic theory of the evolution of consciousness.
Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Wagenknecht, H. A., Rajski, S. R., Pascaly, M., Stemp, E. D., and Barton, J. K. (2001).
Direct observation of radical intermediates in protein-dependent DNA charge transport. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 123, 4400–4407.

A Quantum Biomechanical Basis for Near

Transcription

Documents pareils

Forum casino en ligne francais - Science and the Near Death

COHERENCE 2013/ 2 ROMA

TQFT, groupes quantiques et invariants non commutatifs - IMJ-PRG

Quantum or not, controversial computer yields no speedup

Quantum Rogue Waves as Emerging Quantum Events

Laboratoire de Physique Théorique de la Matière

“Forget time”

Casino En Ligne Bonus Bienvenue - Science and the Near Death

Outline of themes for European section Terminales Nom de l`élève

Brain activity in near-death experiencers during a meditative state

JFFoS Symposium - FoS